Friday, January 25, 2013

One Mistake In A Subtle Way

So I'm eagerly anticipating the new release from the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Mosquito. I was trying to preorder via someone else's smartphone when I detoured into a Rolling Stone article about the album's art. Apparently, a number of longtime fans are upset about the packaging, since it's such a departure from the appearance of their first three albums. For context I'll post those here.

Fever To Tell: psychedelic graffiti/pastiche

Show Your Bones: the winning entry in a flag contest

It's Blitz!: really cool (and messy) photograph

So what does the new one look like? Here. Careful, it's from the realm of the bizarre.

Mosquito: what the shit am I looking at?

This is not the arty, hipster-charming aesthetic that we all know and love from YYYs. This is like a terrible cover to a terrible kids' movie. This is the cover to a Goosebumps novel that R. L. Stine wrote with a severe hangover. Perhaps it's appropriate in the way the title is appropriate, in that it may somehow reflect the music or the subject; but I really feel like this is a misstep on the order of Bob Dylan's Self-Portrait. And the brief preview of either a music video or a live show that is on their site has this worryingly Lady-Gaga's-evil-twin vibe to it and I can't explain it.

What the hell, Yeah Yeah Yeahs? Did you guys stop being hipsters sell out or something?

No comments:

Dossier

I had some stuff I couldn't store in stolen milk crates; so I bring it here when I get the chance.
In addition to blogger, Derek Ralph is a railfan and toy train enthusiast, vinyl collecting music nerd, and an old-fashioned Pittsburgh millhunky.
Contact Me